A preoccupation with death runs through the otherwise upbeat songs of John Flansburgh and John Linnell, aka New York's They Might Be Giants.
"By the time you get this note, we'll no longer be alive," they perkily sing on their album I Like Fun, one of three released last year (another was called My Murdered Remains). Other songs include Dig My Grave, Our Cannibal Friends, Mrs Bluebeard and Exquisite Dead Guy.
Upbeat death songs are a big thing with They Might Be Giants.
This unusual combination – sombre subject matter and memorable melodies – has become something of a hallmark for the duo, although Flansburgh points out they have sung about plenty of other topics in their 35 years together. Scientist Nikola Tesla, costume designer Edith Head, the Kremlin, dogs and minotaurs have all found a place in the back catalogue of the duo's 600 or so songs.
Such a wealth of musical riches can provide a dilemma when it comes to performing: how to choose what to play?
On their latest tour, the solution has been to play two shows, one with songs from the 1980s and 2010s; the other, with songs from the '90s and noughties.
"It's a little bit of a stunt," Flansburgh concedes, "but it has a pretty good pay-off. Both shows have very big highlights."
For the audience at the Factory Theatre on February 23, there is the chance to hear gems from their debut 1986 album, such as Everything Right is Wrong Again along with something from I Like Fun.
On the following night at the Metro, one might hear the top 10 hit Birdhouse in Your Soul from 1990 or Who Put the Alphabet in Alphabetical Order, from one of their four albums for children recorded during the noughties.
Flansburgh says writing for children seemed like a natural progression for the group, but it proved challenging.
"To earn the interest of a kid you have to do something that's immediately delightful. You can't rely on their ability to get cultural references. But with the exception of our death trip obsession, it did seem appropriate. I mean we don't swear and we do have an interest in things beyond romantic love."
The group's Australian shows are the last of a tour that tops off a busy year: last year they wrote a song every week as part of their Dial-A-Song project, which first began in 1983 after John Linnell broke his wrist in a cycling accident and the duo couldn't perform. They recorded songs and placed them as an outgoing message in an answering machine that people could hear when they called. It helped generate a loyal following and created some media interest, becoming an early form of viral marketing, a term that makes Flansburgh wince.
"The viral part sounds exciting but the marketing side ... I die a little bit when someone talks about something having a brand."
These days, the answering machine has gone; replaced by a dedicated Dial-A-Song website. In the almost four decades they have been together, They Might Be Giants have seen technology completely disrupt the music industry yet have not only survived, they have thrived, and with their artistic integrity intact.
Flansburgh says the whole They Might Be Giants experience has been "a blast".
"If you really want your life to fly by, I would say, be in a rock band for 30 years straight. And you will feel like you've only been awake for a couple of months.
"We have had so much fun. But you know I think we're very ambitious about what's still possible and maybe that's not realistic on a professional level. But I think we'd still like to be able to surprise people."